Death in Paradise, Ben Miller on heatstroke, getting divorced and his Potato Years, interview - Telegraph TV and Radio Death in Paradise, Ben Miller on heatstroke, getting divorced and his Potato Years, interview Ben Miller, best known as half of the comedy duo Armstrong and Miller, stars in Death in Paradise, a new BBC crime series. He tells Olly Grant about filming in the Caribbean for six months. Fish out of water: Ben Miller as London detective Richard Poole seconded to Guadeloupe in BBC crime series Death in Paradise. Photo: BBC By Olly Grant 7:30AM BST 25 Oct 2011 Ben Miller is having a busy 2011. Busy? Try manic. By year’s end, he will have achieved the following: lead role in an eight-part drama, six months in Guadeloupe, basic French, directorial debut, science book, sitcom pilot, stage play, divorce, baby. What on earth is going on? Is he OK? “I suppose it’s my midlife crisis, isn’t it?” he says, as we meet to tackle the first item on that list, a BBC One detective show called Death in Paradise. He’s joking, of course.

Isn’t he? Yes, he is. Death in Paradise was shot in Guadeloupe. Miller, 45, plays a cranky and rather hapless sleuth who swaps Scotland Yard for the Caribbean – the joke being that his character, Richard Poole, hates everything about “paradise”, from the sun to the poor quality tea. In fact, the show’s premise originated with a Telegraph report about the death of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer at the 2007 Cricket World Cup in Jamaica. The series’s writer Robert Thorogood noted how the Met had sent detectives to assist the local force. That’s where real-life comparisons end, however, since Death in Paradise is really a light-hearted, Agatha Christie-style whodunit-of-the-week that nestles somewhere between comedy and drama. “To begin with I thought I was in The Wire,” Miller laughs. “It was only after I’d been there a couple of weeks and saw some stuff cut together that I thought, ‘Right, it’s basically Inspector Clouseau.’” Guadeloupe was chosen by the French channel that jointly made the series with the BBC; hence Miller’s new language skills, cultivated off set.

The island looks exquisite on screen but this came at a price. Miller struggled with the 104F, or 40C, heat (not helped by Poole’s ubiquitous woollen suit), and in fact suffered heatstroke during a scene while I was there. There was a brief flap where he forgot his lines, said his hands were “going numb” and ran off to an air-conditioned car to cool down. Related Articles Kris Marshall interview: The new face of Death in Paradise 14 Jan 2014 Back in London he reflects on how the scientific part of his brain was analysing his on-set heat-wobble with a detached fascination. Miller was a scientist before he was an actor. He started a PhD in “quasi zero-dimensional mesoscopic electrical systems” at Cambridge, but dropped out to pursue comedy with fellow graduate Alexander Armstrong. This rather surprised his family, since he had never shown any interest in drama at school. Nor were the Millers known for their showbiz links; his parents were both teachers. “I have since discovered,” he adds, “that I had a great-grandfather who was in the music halls.

He had an act where he would climb into a very small box on stage and shuffle it.” How did his parents react to the u-turn? “They tried to talk me out of it for a number of years. I think they just wanted me to have a bit of stability.” They had to wait a while. “Xander and I call it our Potato Years, because all we ate was potatoes,” he says. “It’s that time in your life when you steal toilet rolls from pubs.” Is he exaggerating? “No! It was an absolute nightmare. I slept on a friend’s kitchen floor for a year and a half.” The pair’s fortunes changed with a Perrier Award in 1996. Regular telly gigs followed; first Saturday Live, then their sketch series, The Armstrong and Miller Show, which has been running, on and off, since 1997. For the moment, though, it’s on ice. “We’re in a fallow year,” Miller admits. But their partnership is still very much alive and kicking. Next up is a Channel 4 pilot for Christmas, written by Men Behaving Badly creator Simon Nye.

“It’s an Edwardian sitcom called Felix and Murdo, about two gentlemen of independent means who have a high old time,” he explains. In the meantime, there has been a cinema release for Huge, a comedy drama that Miller directed. There has also been a surprise return to his academic roots. “I’m writing a science book – a sort of compendium of all the ways I’ve found of explaining things to my artsy friends over the years,” he says. The tome, released next year, will cover everything from “quantum physics to global warming”. There have been changes in his personal life, too. Earlier this year, Miller divorced Belinda Stewart-Wilson, 40, an actress best known for playing “Will’s fit mum” in the hit comedy The Inbetweeners. They separated two years ago, but he admits the split has taken its toll – particularly given that they have a young child, five-year-old Sonny. “It’s horrible for everybody. Nobody wants to get divorced. But we’re lucky that it has turned out the best it possibly could. We’re still very good friends.” He is now in a new relationship with a film producer called Jessica.

They are expecting their first baby in December, so Miller is steeling himself for some “late-shifts”. Helpfully, this will be around the time that his new play, The Ladykillers, co-starring Peter Capaldi, transfers to the West End. A recipe for a nervous breakdown? Miller seems to be relishing the workload. “I will be home around 10.00pm, so I’ll be the cavalry arriving over the hill,” he chirps. Nappies? Late feeds? All of the above. “Taking care of those difficult morning hours,” he smiles. Death in Paradise will be broadcast on Tuesday 25 October on BBC One at 9.00pm Ben Miller | Articles | The List Ben Miller 25 Jul 2016 TV gossip Ben Miller wants to return to 'Death in Paradise'. The 50-year-old actor's grumpy alter-ego Richard Poole was dramatically killed off two years ago in the lighthearted crime comedy drama but has admitted he'd love to reprise his character's ghost for… 2 Oct 2014 TV gossip Ben Miller believes female comedians are out performing their male counterparts.

The 48-year-old comedian-and-actor - who is one half of double act Armstrong and Miller - has praised the "amazing" women who are currently on the comedy circuit. He… 22 Sep 2014 David Tennant, Billy Connolly and Rosamund Pike head up a charming comedy From the creators of TV's Outnumbered comes this enjoyable British comedy that takes the show's winning formula (talented and adorable children, a script that allows those children to improvise much of their dialogue) and successfully translates it to… 5 Sep 2014 TV gossip Ben Miller would "love" to play 'Doctor Who'. The 'What We Did On Our Holidays' actor has admitted he would be thrilled to play the legendary Time Lord in the BBC series, ahead of his 'Doctor Who' debut on Saturday (06.09.14). In an interview with… 8 Apr 2014 TV gossip Ben Miller is going to guest star in the new 'Doctor Who' series.

The actor, best known as one half of comedy duo Armstrong and Miller and for starring in ITV drama 'Primeval', will appear opposite Peter Capaldi when he kicks off his first series as… 2 Jan 2014 TV gossip Danny John-Jules felt he needed to improve on 'Death in Paradise' after watching Ben Miller. The 'Red Dwarf' actor plays Dwayne Myers, one of a group of British policeman on the fictional Caribbean island of Saint-Marie, in the BBC One comedy-drama… 2 Jul 2013 TV gossip 'Broadchurch' has been nominated for three prizes at the TVChoice Awards 2013. The popular ITV murder mystery series is up for the Best New Drama accolade, and lead stars Olivia Colman and David Tennant - who played detectives Ellie Miller and Alec… 9 Apr 2013 TV gossip Kris Marshall has joined the cast of 'Death in Paradise'. The 'My Family' actor will play one of the lead detectives in the new series of the Caribbean crime drama, replacing Ben Miller, the BBC has confirmed.

Kris is set to play an intelligent… 19 Jul 2012 TV Gossip Jamelia is set to star in BBC crime drama series 'Death in Paradise'. The 31-year-old singer will make her TV acting debut in the series, which is filmed in Guadeloupe, alongside Ben Miller and Sara Martins. She said: "I'm so excited - not only… 28 Jun 2011 Moving Wallpaper actor directs first feature film Huge The Moving Wallpaper actor has taken time off from his comedy partnership with Alexander Armstrong to direct a feature film, Huge. He confesses to abusing his banana privileges 27 Oct 2010 We divulge their encounters with Countdown, physics and toffs 1: Ben Miller did a PhD in physics including a thesis entitled ‘Novel Quantum Effects in Quasi-Zero Dimensional Mesoscopic Electron Systems’. Alexander Armstrong has an English degree. Growing up outside Crewe, Miller’s parents were state-sector… 18 Jun 2010 Edinburgh International Film Festival Blog Friday 18th June.

It’s my first day at Edinburgh Film Festival 2010; the opening party is a thing of blurry half-memory and the real business of movie-watching has properly begun, but the atmosphere is a joyous one: the sun is shining, and the weather… Death in Paradise: Why is Ben Miller dying to give up his tropical idyll? Alexia Skinitis 5:36 PM, 14 January 2014 Ben Miller is awaiting our arrival on the set of Death in Paradise – although describing it as a set is doing the island of Guadeloupe a disservice. The actor is standing, barefoot, on an idyllic, palm tree-fringed, white sand beach. While viewers of the crime drama might be used to seeing him in this setting as DI Richard Poole, in his pinstripe suit, with a sheen of perspiration on his forehead and a steely determination to catch the island’s latest murderer in his eye, Miller is not in character this afternoon. He has a towel under his arm, is wearing tartan swimming trunks and has the air of a man who is heading for a dip, despite “Action” being called out by the director not far behind him.

“Welcome to Guadeloupe,” he grins. “Anyone fancy a swim?” Had we been visiting a year ago, Miller would have been sweating in front of the camera for nearly every take of the six-month shoot. But this year he is only here to film his departure from the series. It seems unfathomable that Miller would leave this tropical paradise behind after two years as the uptight detective on the fictional Caribbean island of Saint-Marie. The heat must surely have gone to the actor’s head. “It is the best job in TV, and it was not without a heavy heart,” he says of his decision to leave, while tucking into lobster at his favourite restaurant the next day with Kris Marshall, who plays Humphrey Goodman, the new detective sent out by Scotland Yard to solve the implausibly high number of murders on the picturesque island. “It was the job of a lifetime, but logistically I just didn’t feel I could continue. “I arrived out here for the first series and within a few weeks my wife Jessica discovered she was pregnant. That threw everything, because it meant she couldn’t come and visit me for the six months I was out here.

During the second series, my son Sonny [from his previous marriage] was starting school – your first year of school is so important – and I did think about him coming over here but I’m divorced from his mum, and it wasn’t very practical. Then when I came back, I picked up my baby son Harrison and he started crying because he didn’t know who I was. My personal circumstances just made it too complicated, but I will miss it like a lung. I love it here.” Luckily for Marshall, his family have been able to join him on the island. “I’ve been out here a month now and my wife Hannah and son Thomas only arrived on Wednesday,” says the actor, who made his name as the ditzy Nick in sitcom My Family. “It was the first long period that I’ve ever been away from my little boy and I understand where Ben is coming from. If you’ve got children who are school age it must be incredibly tough being away. Luckily my little boy is only nine months old, so I could potentially come back next year...

if the show gets recommissioned, of course!” With Death in Paradise being one of the BBC’s biggest hits, attracting around eight million regular viewers, it must be an intimidating prospect for Marshall to be taking over from such a popular actor. “It’s daunting, definitely, filling such illustrious sandy brogues,” he says, frowning slightly. “Eight million reasons to be nervous! Ben is brilliant at judging the balance between drama and comedy. He has a real lightness of touch, which makes the show what it is and I hope I can emulate. “I know that some people will be up in arms that Ben has left and may not take to me at first, but that didn’t put me off taking the role – I actually get a sort of kinky kick out of it. I quite like ruffling feathers. And I’m sure there will be some backlash, that’s why I’m leaving the country when it airs!” Back in London months later, Miller and Marshall are reunited in the not-quite-so-tropical surroundings of a Soho PR office. Having just watched his last scene in the opening episode of the new series, is Miller having any regrets, or does getting home every evening to hug his little boy justify turning his back on paradise?

“You know what?” Miller frowns. “He still doesn’t know who I am. I see him every day and he still cries when I pick him up. Turns out it’s nothing to do with me being away, he just doesn’t like me!” Death in Paradise starts tonight at 9:00pm on BBC1 Actor Ben Miller on dramatic exit from BBC's Death In Paradise | TV & Radio | Showbiz & TV | Daily Express 00:01, Sat, Jan 11, 2014 Ben Miller as Death In Paradise detective, Richard Poole [BBC] It’s got to be right up there with the best jobs in acting – jetting off for six months to film on a sun-drenched Caribbean island. Not only that, but it just happens to be for one of the highest-rated shows on the BBC. So when it was announced last spring that Ben Miller had quit his starring role in crime comedy drama Death In Paradise, filmed on tropical Guadalupe, many fans were left scratching their heads in disbelief. What could have prompted him to leave one of the cushiest jobs in showbiz? Ben, 47, explains that it was love for his family that made the decision inevitable.

“I had just begun work on the first series of Death In Paradise when my wife Jessica discovered she was pregnant,” he says. “Our son, Harrison, was born just after I finished filming, but when I went back out for the second series, I didn’t see much of him at all. It was hard, and I just didn’t feel like I could do that again. My Family star Kris Marshall joins series regular Sara Martins in Guadalupe [BBC] I didn’t see much of my son at all. It was hard and I didn’t feel like I could do that again Ben Miller “My elder son, [seven-year-old] Sonny, was at nursery at the time, but now he’s started school so he couldn’t come out either. It just wasn’t going to work. That said, I’m very sorry to be leaving.” The actor, who portrays Richard Poole, a grumpy English detective inspector on the fictional island Saint-Marie, has another surprise up his sleeve for fans. In true Death In Paradise fashion, his character is set to be bumped off in a major whodunnit plot in the first episode.

While the exact details of the murder – and culprit – are being kept under wraps, the first episode will see a host of stars making a guest appearance as suspects, most notably Cold Feet and Cuckoo actress Helen Baxendale. Heading up the murder investigation is the bright, but rather disorganised and gawky DI Humphrey Goodman (played by My Family and Lightfields star Kris Marshall), fresh off a plane from London. “I’m thrilled,” says Kris, 40, who will join series regulars Sara Martins (Camille), Danny John-Jules (Dwayne) and Gary Carr (Fidel) as the show’s new lead detective. “Six months filming on a tropical island with an amazing cast and glorious sunshine? What isn’t there to love?” Thankfully for Kris, his family (wife Hannah Dodkins and his baby son, Thomas) were able to make the move out to Guadalupe to be with him for the entire duration of filming, making the transition easier. However, he does admit to feeling apprehensive about the public’s reaction to such a major cast change. “It is a risk,” says Kris. “Ben has done such a fantastic job.

I know some people are not going to be happy; there’s no two ways about it. But I just hope that the majority of people are.” Ben says he’s confident that Kris will be a worthy successor. In fact, far from offering him any pearls of wisdom, he reveals Kris slotted seamlessly into the cast – leaving him to enjoy the perks of being a guest star. “Guesting on Death In Paradise is probably one of the best jobs in TV. We always find that there’s one person every series who comes out and then never goes home,” he laughs. Related articles TV pick of the day: Supersize vs Superskinny “While poor Kris was slogging his guts out, I ambled off and did a tour of the island, sipped a few pina coladas and put in some serious beach hours…” The actor and comedian, previously best known as one half of double act Armstrong and Miller with Alexander Armstrong, says there are many things he’ll miss about the series, not least the fantastic people he’s worked with. But he’s hoping it won’t be the last we’ve seen of him in Death In Paradise.

“Perhaps, once my kids are a little older and Kris has worked on his tan for long enough, I could return to the show. “I’m not sure how yet, but I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of Richard’s long lost twin brother making an appearance…” Death In Paradise, Tuesday, 9pm, BBC1 Most read in TV & Radio Ben Miller (Comedian) - Pics, Videos, Dating, & News Ben Miller Male Born Feb 24, 1966 Bennet Evan "Ben" Miller is an English comedian, actor and director. He is perhaps best known as one half of comedy double act Armstrong and Miller, along with Alexander Armstrong. Together the pair wrote and starred in Channel 4 sketch show Armstrong and Miller, and the more recent BBC television sketch show The Armstrong and Miller Show.

As of 2011, he is starring in crime drama series Death in Paradise.… Read More related links Texas Diner Tips Waiter $750 So He Can Fly Home To Ireland Huffington Post - Nov 22, 2016 ' \n \n \n Â \n A total stranger in Texas is being credited with leaving a $750 tip for a waiter from Ireland, a generous gift the waiter says will help fly his new family home to meet his folks. \n In a Facebook post thatâs since gone viral, Taryn Keith, the waiterâs girlfriend, who told The Huffington Post she is expecting a baby in late January, shared a photo of the remarkable triple-digit tip her boyfriend was given on a $122.87 tab. \n âHopefully this can get you back to Irel... This Shoe Salesman Lived An Unassuming Life.

Then He Died, And His Hometown Got Quite The Surprise LATimes - Oct 14, 2016 ' Ken Millen was born in 1930 and grew up here on North C Street, a neighborhood of treeless blocks along the Wishkah River, which occasionally swallows a chunk of a deteriorating house and carries it away. âOlâ Ken lived there all his life,â said Lauri Penttila, nodding down the alley toward a blue-and-white... ' When You Weren't Paying Attention Congress Shook Up The Student Loan Market Huffington Post - Dec 23, 2015 ' Some 42 million Americans could become less likely to fall behind on their student loans -- and get better customer service -- thanks to a new measure the Republican-led Congress forced on the U.S. Department of Education this month. The government\'s four largest student loan contractors have the worst track record when it comes to preventing late payments. Despite this, the Education Department funnels the bulk of new loans to those four contractors. But 50 words tucked into an 887-...

Federal Student Aid Office Calls Failure A Success And Hands Out Big Bonuses Huffington Post - Nov 19, 2015 ' In 1998, the Republican-led Congress and President Bill Clinton\'s Democratic administration decided to give the U.S. Department of Education\'s financial aid office more freedom to run the student loan program in exchange for it committing to measurable goals. It may have been a huge mistake. That\'s the takeaway from a congressional hearingÂ Wednesday that featured blistering criticism from government watchdogs, House Republicans and higher education experts directed at the Office ... Learn about the memorable moments in the evolution of Ben Miller. CHILDHOOD 1966 Birth Born on February 24, 1966. TWENTIES 1989 23 Years Old Having already finished his undergraduate degree, he joined the Footlights in 1989, working with Andy Parsons, David Wolstencroft and Sue Perkins, and went on to direct a revue. 1992 26 Years Old Miller moved to London to pursue a career in comedy.

He was introduced to fellow Cambridge graduate Alexander Armstrong in 1992, at the TBA Sketch Comedy Group, a comedy club which ran at the Gate Theatre Studio, Notting Hill throughout the 1990s. … Read More They performed their first full-length show together at the Edinburgh Fringe in 1994 and returned in 1996, when they were nominated for the Perrier Comedy Award. Read Less THIRTIES 1997 31 Years Old Their success resulted in the commission of the television series Armstrong and Miller, which ran for four series from 1997 to 2001 â one on the Paramount Comedy Channel and three on Channel 4. … Read More In 1998, the duo also had their own radio show with the same name on BBC Radio 4, which featured many of the sketches and characters from their TV series. After a six-year break, the show was recommissioned for Hattrick Productions as The Armstrong and Miller Show and is in its third series.

In 2008, they also had a second radio show, Children's Hour with Armstrong and Miller.<br /><br /> Miller also started acting in films, starring in Steve Coogan's first feature film, The Parole Officer (2001). Read Less 2003 37 Years Old In 2003 he played the role of 'Bough', sidekick to Rowan Atkinson's title character, in the film Johnny English. Show Less In 2004 he co-starred in The Prince and Me. In 2004 and 2005, he starred in two series of the BBC television series The Worst Week of My Life, with Sarah Alexander. FORTIES In 2006 he took part in a three-part Christmas special, The Worst Christmas of My Life. … Miller directed a television pilot that subsequently became the first episode of Steve Coogan's 2006 British BBC TV series Saxondale. He and Alexander Armstrong have formed a production company named Toff Media. <br /><br />Miller was awarded a Judges' Commendation for his portrayal of Hamlet at the 1990 National Student Drama Festival.

He co-wrote MindGym, winner of the first BAFTA Interactive Entertainment Award for comedy in 1998, with Tim Wright and Adam Gee. He and Armstrong won a BCA Award for The Armstrong and Miller Show. In 2010 they also won a BAFTA for The Armstrong and Miller Show. <br /><br />Miller's first wife was Belinda Stewart-Wilson, who guest-starred with him in Series 3 of Primeval. Read Less The pair, who have a son Jackson, known as Sonny, born in 2006, divorced in 2011. … Read More Miller has another son, Harrison, born in late 2011 and a daughter born in June 2015, with his second wife production executive Jessica Parker, daughter of British musician Alan Parker, whom he married in September 2013.<br /><br /> On 20 February 2009, Miller appeared with Rob Brydon in an episode of QI (Series 6. 9). Brydon has often been mistaken for Miller, and as a joke they dressed in similar shirts for the episode and shared an on-screen narcissistic kiss.

A talented musician, Miller plays the guitar and drums. Read Less 2007 - 2010 3 More Events 2007 41 Years Old He starred as James Lester in ITV's 2007 sci-fi drama Primeval and as Mr Jonathan in the Australian film Razzle Dazzle: A Journey into Dance. 2008 42 Years Old Miller provided the voice for the ITV Digital and now PG Tips Monkey in a popular series of television advertisements featuring Johnny Vegas. In 2008, he appeared as television producer Jonathan Pope in Tony Jordan's series Moving Wallpaper on ITV1 and starred in Thank God You're Here. 2010 44 Years Old In 2010, he made his directorial debut with the film Huge.

Ben Miller - Biography - IMDb Ben Miller Jump to: Overview (3) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (2) | Trade Mark (1) | Trivia (6) Overview (3) 5' 8½" (1.74 m) Mini Bio (1) Halfway through a PhD in physics at Cambridge University, Ben met Alexander Armstrong (who was also studying there) in 1992. Instead of finishing his PhD, Ben chose to scrap science for comedy and started playing at the Comedy Club Footlights, Cambridge. After four years of touring pubs and underground comedy clubs, the pair appeared on 'Saturday Night' as (now one of their most well-known sketches) Euro-Rock duo 'Strijka.' The year 1996 saw the pair nominated for the Perrier Award and were given their first commissioned series, The Armstrong and Miller Show (1997). Broadcast first on the Paramount Channel, which was then followed by three further series shown on Channel Four (1997, 1999 & 2001).

Ben and Alexander took "The Armstrong and Miller Show" on tour in November 2001 and did a 17-day back-to-back stint. The success of "Armstrong and Miller" (1997)_ gave Ben a springboard to work on other projects. _Passion Killers (1999)_ and The Blind Date (2000) are just two of the television films that enabled Ben to go more mainstream and show that he is capable of straight acting as well as his cheeky-chappy side shown in The Armstrong and Miller Show (1997). Ben is not shy of the big screen either. August 2001 saw the release of Steve Coogan 's: The Parole Officer (2001), in which Ben played small-time criminal Colin; in 1999, he starred alongside Ray Winstone and Robert Carlyle in the comedy drama_ There's Only One Jimmy Grimble (2000)_. Most people may not recognize Ben as the voice of ITV's Digital Monkey that stars alongside fellow comedian Johnny Vegas in the infamous adverts, which has led to a wad of merchandise and a string of 15-minute programs yet to be shown.

March 2002 saw Ben as a snotty hotel concierge in Jez Butterworth 's film Birthday Girl (2001). With further future projects lined up for 2002 (including a six-part series called The Book Group (2002), to be shown later on), only time will tell if the 35-year-old will remain underground or leap out into the mainstream audience. Since 2003, Ben has continued his successful solo and comedy career. He played Rowan Atkinson 's sidekick Bough in the 2003's blockbuster Johnny English (2003). He went to Canada to film The Prince and Me (2004). Mainstream audiences started to take notice in 2005, when The Worst Week of My Life (2004) aired in BBC1. It was so successful that a second series was commissioned for the following year. In 2006, the BBC wanted a pilot comedy show from Ben and Alexander - they hadn't made a show together since The Armstrong and Miller Show (1997) (4th series) which aired in 2001.

This pilot led to The Armstrong and Miller Show (2007) not only coming back to television but to a more mainstream audience - being shown on BBC1 on Friday nights in 2007. After 14 years on the comedy circuit, the pair were finally rewarded with a BAFTA for best comedy program in 2010. Four series later, the duo decided to tour the UK again and played 62 shows up and down the country between September and November 2010. Summer of 2011: He released his directorial debut film Huge (2010). Winter of 2011 saw Ben in the Caribbean for the BBC's Death in Paradise (2011). His first book, "It's Not Rocket Science," is being released in summer 2012. Ben was in the theater production of "The Ladykillers" in the West End. - IMDb Mini Biography By: jas Spouse (2) How is Ben Miller's DI Richard Poole going to leave Death in Paradise?

Alexia Skinitis and Ben Dowell 8:40 AM, 29 December 2013 We knew that the fictional Caribbean island of Saint Marie is a dangerous place but viewers of BBC1’s Death in Paradise have always had Ben Miller’s Richard Poole on hand to help solve the grisly crimes. That was until the actor announced last April that he was due to leave the show. But quite how he was to depart had been a closely guarded secret – until now. (And if you want to watch the episode on January 14 we suggest you stop reading now). That is because the BBC have revealed that Miller's buttoned up and eccentric character DI Richard Poole is going to be the victim of the beautiful island’s virulent crime rate. Viewers will see DI Poole murdered before the opening credits of the first episode on Tuesday January 14, with his replacement DI Humphrey Goodman (played by My Family and BT ads star Kris Marshall) attempting to solve the murder – with the aid of clues Poole has left behind to help him along the way. “I have loved being part of the show,” explains Miller. “But for personal reasons just couldn’t continue.

Being away from my family for six months a year – even if it was in the beautiful surroundings of Guadeloupe in the Caribbean – was just too hard. “Once I had made the decision to leave I talked to the writers about the best way to make my exit. Filming DI Poole’s death was very emotional but I hope viewers will agree it is a sensational way to go… in a good way. It was a really bold thing to do and it is quite shocking but it’s also kind of clever. The way that Humphrey and Richard work together to solve the murder is a brilliant way to transition from me to Kris and I hope despite being sad viewers will enjoy it.” DI Richard Poole arrived in Saint Marie two series ago to replace his murdered predecessor, so Miller says that the latest twist offers "circularity" to the plot. Miller added that he did not want to keep the door open for his character to return. “Richard in Croydon wouldn’t be quite as much fun as Richard in Guadeloupe,” says Miller. “It’s the fish out of water thing that’s important, isn’t it? Although people have grown to love his eccentricities, so maybe he could have continued solving crime elsewhere.

It’s a bit late for that now. “Cornwall would have been close enough to home and still a bit alien to him - I suppose Doc Martin would have had something to say about that though!” Ben Miller wants Death in Paradise return TV News Ben Miller wants Death in Paradise return Ben Miller has admitted he'd love to reprise his role as Richard Poole in 'Death in Paradise' but appreciates that it'll be hard because his character was killed off in 2014. Ben Miller Ben Miller wants to return to 'Death in Paradise'. The 50-year-old actor's grumpy alter-ego Richard Poole was dramatically killed off two years ago in the lighthearted crime comedy drama but has admitted he'd love to reprise his character's ghost for a flashback scene in the future. Asked if he'd like to return to the show, he said: "Yeah, of course I would. It would be great fun! I love the character, he's fantastic fun to do. But there's no talk of that whatsoever, to be honest with you.

It was pretty final, I thought!" And, although he's sad his alter-ego was killed off in series three, Ben believes it was the right decision at the time. He explained: "On balance, I think it was the right decision. It was a difficult thing to go through, it was a hard thing to see a character you love killed. And in a particularly brutal fashion! Not that anyone in 'Death in Paradise' dies in a gentle way, they're always quite extreme!" And Ben felt he had no choice but to bow out of the popular series, which is filmed and set in France, after he found out his wife Jessica was expecting a baby - Harrison, now five. Speaking to Digital Spy, he said: "I loved the hot sun, but what wasn't quite so practical was that I'd been out there barely two weeks when I discovered my wife was pregnant, so that was the difficulty for me. "While Harrison was a baby it wasn't so much of a problem doing the first two series because he practically didn't know whether I was there or not!

But as he started to get older, it became more of an issue, really." Death in Paradise DVD Box Set Series 1-5 Region 2 PAL (Not US) Death in Paradise DVD Box Set Series 1-5 Region 2 PAL (Not US) Photos not available for this variation Item condition: See details about international shipping here. help icon for Shipping - opens a layer Items shipping internationally may be subject to customs processing depending on the item's declared value. Sellers set the item's declared value and must comply with customs declaration laws. Buyers may be subject to additional charges for customs clearance. Visit eBay's page on international trade . Item location: Seller assumes all responsibility for this listing. Last updated on Sep 27, 2016 07:08:51 PDT View all revisions Item specifics Condition: Brand New: An item that has never been opened or removed from the manufacturer’s sealing (if applicable). Item is in original shrink wrap (if applicable). See the seller's listing for full details. See all condition definitions- opens in a new window or tab ...

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Question: In the first two series of which TV comedy drama did Ben Miller play D I Richard Poole?
Answer: DEATH IN PARADISE